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Tips for shaking "the career retail" tag.
I have worked in several positions within retail, working my way up to management. However, due to work/life balance (and many other factors) I am moving away from that. I have a degree in marketing and management, but to make things harder, I am in a new city with no real networking. I've had a few bites, but every time it comes down to "you've worked in retail, we're not sure you can transition." What are some good ways to shift away from that notion? Or find a solid lead without a network?
Erin McCabe-BarberaSecurity administrator
1.88k
07/01/20 at 5:36PM UTC
Hi Rebecca,
Like you I worked my way up in retail to management I was there 15 years before I went to college and received my degree In technology, I find it helps when I discuss it to let the employer know how much I learned , the best place to learn customer service? Retail. Best place to learn working well with people? Retail ... And the list goes on once I mention I learned customer service skills they agree almost immediately some have worked in retail and know what you mean and others know because they shop and they have seen what it can be all about. Use what you have learned form it !
Good luck!
Nina Ottman
17
07/01/20 at 1:11PM UTC
Hi Rebecca. I worked in retail for 12 years and made the transition to office administration, and now HR, on my way to user experience design. I have found that telling the story of how and why you arrived at this transition helps a lot. One of the first questions a recruiter asks is "tell me about yourself." I use this as an opportunity to paint the picture and connect the dots for them. You don't need to give a whole history lesson, but help them understand. Which parts of the job did you love that you're trying to get more of? Which of your skills are applicable? How did you choose this new trajectory out of all the possible career changes you could make. Sometimes from our end it feels like a no-brainer, but to everyone else it's not. Best of luck in your job search!
Katie KristlCustomer Support & Success Professional, Denver
138
06/25/20 at 3:49AM UTC
Hi Rebecca! I'd recommend thinking through how to talk about your transferable skills from retail into a new role. If you can connect those dots for the hiring manager, they'll be able to see how you can contribute right off the bat.
You can check out resources on LinkedIn or YouTube to learn how to talk about those transferable skills - I recently came across the Work It Daily website and they have a few YouTube videos that share some good advice for talking about transferable skills and quantifying them (one example can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWPePhbYo-s).
I've personally hired people for my teams that hadn't spent a day in the role I was hiring for... but they painted a picture to show me how they could take their experience and apply it to my open position.
It can be done!! Hang in there and best of luck!
